Shadowing Practice: Americans pick pumpkins for Halloween | Vietnam Today - Learn English Speaking with Video
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29 sentences
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Pumpkin picking has become a popular fall tradition, drawing families to the countryside year after year.
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In New York, many family -run farms have combined agriculture with seasonal activities for decades,
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turning a simple harvest tradition into lasting family memories.
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Our VTV correspondents visit one of them.
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For over 25 years, Vincent has worked at Darkman Farm.
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Every October, he drives tritail pool wagons, taking families to the pumpkin patch.
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Farm wagons become first -class rides for visitors.
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Well, start out in the morning with like generally two tractors and wagons, and according to how busy it gets,
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we'll be up to four of them.
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Well, we give, like I said, the rides are free, other places charge.
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You know, it's more of like a family thing, everybody comes.
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The farm grows more than 70 pumpkin varieties harvested about a month ago.
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The pumpkins are laid out for visitors to choose from.
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But finding the perfect one gets harder as Halloween approaches.
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I guess you kind of want to try and go maybe a little earlier than now, depending on the weather.
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If it's too cold, the pumpkins, if they freeze, they'll get mushy.
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So no good so you want to try and stay before the very cold weather,
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but not too soon, that when you carve your pumpkin it rots before Halloween.
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And after I take out all the seeds, I pick a design and I pin it on the front of the pumpkin,
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and then I use a tack and I make all the holes, and then I use a knife and I carve it out,
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and then it's a carved pumpkin.
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From selling and delivering fresh produce to local homes,
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The Dikeman family has built a 350 agar farm over four generations with recognized standards for responsible family.
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Today, it continues to welcome families who return year after year.
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It has been a trying year, but every year there's always something going on.
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It's too wet, it's too dry, but we're very happy to say that we've had a great selection of pumpkins for everyone.
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And I think that everyone's getting an opportunity to get out on such a beautiful fall day.
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Many American families prefer coming to a farm to pick their own pumpkins rather than buying them at a grocery store.
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Good night, reporting for Vietnam Today from New York.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Americans pick pumpkins for Halloween”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: pumpkin, farm, families, wagons. This video has 29 sentences and 392 words to shadow. The speech runs for 2:36. The speaker talks at a natural 151 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 80% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| pumpkin noun | /ˈpʌm(p).kɪn/ | A domesticated plant, in species Cucurbita pepo, similar in growth pattern, foliage, flower, and fruit to the squash or melon. |
| wagon noun | /ˈwæɡən/ | A heavier four-wheeled (normally horse-drawn) vehicle designed to carry goods (or sometimes people). |
| harvest noun | /ˈhɑɹ.vəst/ | The process of gathering the ripened crop; harvesting. |
| visitor noun | /ˈvɪzɪtɚ/ | Someone who visits someone else; someone staying as a guest. |
| knife noun | /ˈnaɪ̯f/ | A utensil or a tool designed for cutting, consisting of a flat piece of hard material, usually steel or other metal (the blade), usually sharpened on one edge… |
| agriculture noun | /ˈæɡ.ɹɪˌkʌl.t͡ʃɚ/ | The art or science of cultivating the ground, including the growing and harvesting of crops, and the rearing and management of livestock. |
| seed noun | /siːd/ | Any propagative portion of a plant which may be sown, such as true seeds, seed-like fruits, tubers, or bulbs. |
| depend verb | /dɪˈpɛnd/ | To be contingent or conditioned; to have something as a necessary condition |
| patch noun | /pæt͡ʃ/ | A piece of cloth, or other suitable material, sewed or otherwise fixed upon a garment to repair or strengthen it, especially upon an old garment to cover a… |
| combine verb | /kəmˈbaɪn/ | To bring (two or more things or activities) together; to unite. |
| freeze verb | /ˈfɹiːz/ | Especially of a liquid, to become solid due to low temperature. |
| grocery noun | /ˈɡɹəʊ.s(ə.)ɹi/ | Retail foodstuffs and other household supplies. |
| seasonal adjective | /ˈsiːzənəl/ | Of, related to, or reliant on a season or period of the year, especially with regard to weather characteristics. |
| countryside noun | /ˈkʌn.tɹiˌsaɪd/ | An area located outside of towns and cities; an area that is not urban or suburban; a rural area. |
| correspondent noun | /ˌkɔɹ.ɪˈspɑn.dənt/ | Something which corresponds with something else; counterpart. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| take out verb | To remove. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has become · have combined · has worked |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | we'll be · they'll get |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 4 contractions and reduced forms, such as they'll, we'll, we're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- Long words — get the stress right: agriculture /ˈæɡ.ɹɪˌkʌl.t͡ʃɚ/, correspondent /ˌkɔɹ.ɪˈspɑn.dənt/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like pumpkin, wagon, harvest.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.